156 Road Deaths Attributed to 'The BIG Four' OPP Report Shows

ORILLIA, ON - As of October 1, 2018 the deaths of 156 people on Ontario Provincial Police-(OPP)-patrolled roads were linked to the "Big Four" leading contributing factors in road fatalities. These are aggressive driving, alcohol/drug impaired driving, inattentive driving and lack of seat belt use.

"Drivers have it within their means to end road deaths that fall into these four categories because these are not accidents that occur through no one's wrongdoing," said OPP Deputy Commissioner Brad Blair.

So far this year, 50 deaths were linked to speeding (one form of aggressive driving). Thirty seven (37) deaths were attributed to an inattentive driver and 35deaths involved a driver who had consumed alcohol and/or drugs. Failure to wear a seat belt was a factor in 34 people losing their lives in collisions on OPP-patrolled roads.

Over the Thanksgiving Long Weekend, the OPP is joining police partners across Canada for Operation Impact, an enforcement-driven initiative aimed at increasing public compliance with laws in place to save lives and reduce injuries on our roads.

"So far this year, the OPP has laid more than 175,155 charges against aggressive, inattentive, alcohol and drug-impaired drivers, and unbuckled vehicle occupants. The three behaviours associated with driving are linked to 15,269 collisions to date, 95 of which were fatal. The goal of Operation Impact is not about issuing traffic tickets. It is about seeing every driver, without police intervention, refrain from risky driving behaviours and every vehicle occupant buckled up." - Deputy Commissioner BRAD BLAIR, Provincial Commander of Traffic Safety and Operational Support.

DID YOU KNOW?

Operation Impact is an annual initiative sponsored by the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

Operation Impact is part of Canada's broader Road Safety Strategy 2025 which aims to make Canada's roads the safest in the world.

Drug-impaired and alcohol-impaired driving have always been illegal and this will not change once Cannabis becomes legal on October 17, 2018.